Ideas Make Manifestos
brand development by sarah feeney
A brand manifesto is a mash-up of all the building blocks that create a brand.
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It’s less dry than a bunch of “mission” and “vision” statements that nobody outside those who create them ever reads.
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(Sorry, but they don’t).
They focus on something more meaningful.
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They are a declaration full of intent and more of a statement about the brand's soul.
They offer a more human, emotional connection to the brand.
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Here are ten reasons to write a manifesto for your brand or project.
1. Having a manifesto increases your chance of success.
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2. A manifesto helps you stop talking and start doing.
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3. It has a point and sticks to it.
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4. It has intent, which brings about change.
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5. When they allude to a better place, people want to help you get there.
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6. They shouldn’t be too earnest...
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7. ...because people need to have fun. When things are fun, things get done.
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8. They need to be actionable.
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9. ​ They need a multiplier, find yours and proliferate your manifesto.
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(that’s me)
If your project/brand/workplace would benefit from a manifesto, call me.
I also write manifestos for brands to share with their fans, like this one for Sweet Gwendoline French Gin which I am a partner in.
Click the image below to view it.
WORKING TOGETHER
Our work together begins with a brand workshop —an explorative and revealing process to help you articulate your brand and why you're doing it.
With that sorted, we can look at how you use that intent to grow without falling into the dreaded
“MARKETING TRAP”
—acting formulaically instead of having a more instinctive manifesto for YOUR brand.
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The brand strategy needed always varies by brand; each brand has its conundrum, regardless of its size.
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For example:
BRAND CONUNDRUMS I'VE HELPED SOLVE
The brand grew organically and didn't make sense as an organisation; fans struggled to navigate interactions, getting lost in silos.
My favourite projects are post-rationalising brands to give them a formal framework for growth —without losing their organic, sincere feel. I'm an advocate for
"DOING SOMETHING BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE URGE TO DO IT, INVENTING THE REASON LATER."
As Tony Wilson once said.
I also work with brands after they've been through the
CULT TO COOL TO COMMERCIAL LIFE CYCLE.
The strategy here is to reconnect with the brand's original intent and core fans whose support keeps things credible no matter how large the brand becomes.
And I've worked with brands that lost the additional value they brought to people's lives—they stopped introducing fans to the new and exciting stuff. The fans got bored.
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So we introduced fans to something unexpected they didn't know they would like.
This made them sit up and retake notice.